Location: Kansas City
Top Things to do in Kansas City
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The 10 Best Hidden Gems Things to do in Kansas City, Missouri (MO)
The home of swing and bebop for some, "The City of Fountains" to others, Kansas City is different things to different people. Music enthusiasts are drawn to the jazz clubs and old haunts of famous musicians such as Charlie Parker and Count Basie. With more fountains than Rome, there is ample opportunity for scenic strolling from fountain to fountain. Stop along the way to discover interesting neighborhoods and browse through eclectic shops. Families are particularly attracted to the city because of its child-friendly events and venues. Science City features hands-on exhibits including a mock television studio where kids can deliver a weather forecast, while the Zoo houses impressive African and Australian exhibits plus an IMAX Theater. The city's museums cover everything from the history of jazz music to a celebration of African American baseball players. Once a trading post for pioneers heading to the Western United States, today Kansas City is a burgeoning metropolis with activities and attractions for visitors of all ages and interests.
Restaurants in Kansas City
1. KC Barbecue Tours
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 330 reviews
Calling all Carnivores! Hop on and let us take you to the BBQ. KC is famous for its barbecue and now you can find out why. Never mind stopping at just 1 restaurant, hit 3-4 in less than 4 hours. Our tours visit some of Kansas City's big name barbecue restaurants and hidden gem barbecue joints. Our tours not only include sampling various barbecue meats & side dishes, but also provide historical Kansas City sight seeing. Come hungry!
2. Barley Bus Tours
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 493 reviews
Tour & Taste KC's best breweries, wineries & distilleries! This is your opportunity to get an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the places and people making some of KC's best beer, wine & liquor!
3. Heart of America Shakespeare Festival
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 16 reviews
4. Anita B. Gorman Conservation Discovery Center
5. Tom's Town Distilling Co.
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 358 reviews
Drawing inspiration from the country's most corrupt political boss, Tom Pendergast, Tom's Town Distilling Co. is downtown Kansas City's first legal distillery since Prohibition. Enjoy a craft cocktail in our gorgeous art deco tasting room or take our 1 hour tour for an in-depth look at the distillation process and a brief overview of Kansas City during Boss Tom's rule. Cheers!
Reviewed By Peakles
A friend and I took the distillery tour and learned some lesser know Kansas City history in addition to the process for of the Tom's Town's different liquors. I discovered I like good vodka and gin and my friend discovered a new whiskey to love. Nicole was a great tour guide. She added bits of fun to the tour and was great answering questions.
6. Arabia Steamboat Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,148 reviews
The Arabia Steamboat Museum is a favorite Kansas City attraction, a history museum housing 200 tons of cargo from life on the American frontier in 1856. Our tour is now self-guided to assist with social distancing and face masks are required by order of the health department. You'll want to plan about 90 minutes for a visit.
Reviewed By GoSunnyland - Springfield, United States
What a find..literally!! Our tour group of "seasoned" travelers and gray-haired adventurers spent almost 2 hours viewing the unearthed relics of a by-gone era, and talking with some of the people who have spent the better part of the last 30 years digging for treasure in the Missouri mud. If this is your only chance to see the Museum and visit with the treasure hunters, plan on more than a couple of hours - especially if you include strolling through the City Market located in the same block. Even the short film kept our interest! Makes a great lunch-stop; there's plenty of restaurants, diners, cafes and food trucks close-by. The only drawback is the scarcity of motor coach parking and tight city streets further narrowed to allow for the KC Trolleys; plan on a mid-week or Sunday morning visit for large groups on buses.
7. The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 324 reviews
The National Museum of Toys and Miniatures features the world's largest collection of fine-scale miniatures and one of the nation's largest collection of historic toys on public display.
Reviewed By brucemB9157II
I really enjoyed looking at all the miniatures they have on display. It makes you stop and think how people take the time and love to make those miniatures.
8. Kansas City Gangster Tour
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 99 reviews
Kansas City was a favorite spot of the “old timers.” The Gangster Tour puts you hot on the trail of this city's most notorious Goodfellas. Don't make us twist your arm. Grab your chopper, hop on the bus and you’ll be immersed in a melodramatic look at mob homes and hangouts, turf wars and infamous crimes like the Union Station massacre. Tours board at Union Station's West Transit Pavilion.
9. Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 1,038 reviews
Opened in 1991, this museum is a tribute to some of baseball's best unknown players.
Reviewed By DMGAmes_Iowa - Ames, United States
This museum is excellent in presenting its topic, the Negro Baseball Leagues, in the context of general American history and African-American history specifically. The exhibits include videos and films, photographs, baseball uniforms, extensive biographies of all stars like Satchel Paige and Jackie Robinson, also Negro women baseball players. Also on display are lockers of some 3 dozen baseball players, dioramas of a black barber shop and a boardinghouse room (blacks were not permitted to stay in hotels until the 1950s/1960s), autographed baseballs, mannequins and the center masterpiece consisting of a baseball diamond with life-size bronze sculptures of specific players. If you are "in" to museums like my wife and I are, I suggest buying a combination entrance ticket to this museum and the adjoining American Jazz Museum. Seniors get an additional discount.
10. Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio State Historic Site
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 123 reviews
Thomas Hart Benton's life is present in both his home and his paintings, and both are preserved at Thomas Hart Benton Home and Studio State Historic Site. A trip to the home and studio of the renowned painter, sculptor, lecturer and writer offers a glimpse into how the talented Benton lived and worked. Benton converted half of the carriage house into his art studio, which remains as he left it. Visitors can still see coffee cans full of paintbrushes, numerous paints, and a stretched canvas waiting to be transformed into another of his masterpieces. Thomas Hart Benton died in his studio in 1975.
Reviewed By dr2u - Leavenworth, United States
This is another of the great small sites that the Missouri State Park system preserves. It provides a look not only into the artist's life, but into life over the time the Bentons lived in this house. With everything preserved as they left it upon their deaths, you can get a really good look into the mid-20th century here. It seems like a unique house, but reflects a style present throughout the Roanoke neighborhood. It is well worth an hour to tour and then drive the area. There is a brochure available for a driving / walking tour of the area.
